Summer roundup

June's fine, warm weather seemed to be the best of the summer as it made way to cooler temperatures and plenty of rain throughout the school holidays. Apart from the odd day, the feeders in our new 'nature area' outside the shop have remained busy throughout the season. The bulk of the birds using the feeders have been Blue Tits, Great Tits, Coal Tits, Collared Doves, House Sparrows, Robins, Dunnocks, Chaffinches and Goldfinches. We do see Greenfinches occasionally, although of course their numbers have declined dramatically over the past 12 years thanks to Tricho. The Great Spotted Woodpecker family have mostly disappeared, going back to natural food which is most abundant for them at this time of year, as is also the case for Blackbirds and Starlings. Nuthatches visit fairly regularly but are always in and out in a flash.

Blue Tit

Coal Tit

Great Tit

Non-feeder visitors include daily Goldcrests & Chiffchaffs, with Swallows and House Martins overhead. The Swifts departed some time in August without so much as a goodbye. Our first Spotted Flycatcher sighting of the year came on the last day of August down by the cow sheds where the Chiffchaffs have been so active. Unfortunately the bird didn't stay long!

Spotted Flycatcher, 31/08/17

A week later on the 9th September, in the very same spot, came our 95th addition to our species list. Once again the Chiffchaffs were actively searching for insects when another warbler arrived, sat and had a quick preen before flying off. The visit lasted no more than 10 seconds but fortunately I managed to get a few photographs to confirm its ID as a Reed Warbler.

Reed Warbler, 09/09/17

Last week saw our first sighting of a Treecreeper in a while. I recognised the call immediately and managed to find the bird on the Oak Tree in the car park. My photos aren't particularly good but it was nice to see none-the-less!

Treecreeper, 15/09/17

Most likely the same pair of Grey Wagtails which successfully raised a brood here in May/June have been back recently too, joining the Pied Wagtails.

Pied Wagtail

Grey Wagtail

Finally, this afternoon I have seen a pair of Marsh Tits back for the first time since February. I had gone out after hearing the Treecreeper again, and while looking for it in the oak tree I spotted the Marsh Tit at the feeder. They were going for Black Sunflowers, presumably caching them for the winter.

Marsh Tit, 19/09/17

Shop News:

At the start of September we became a Premier Dealer for Zeiss binoculars. This addition to our range furthers our reputation as the best place in the county for trying out optics, and gives customers an opportunity to compare two alpha brands in Swarovski and Zeiss. We now have around 60 pairs of binoculars in stock so the cabinets are looking pretty grand!

Breeding success

It's very hard to tell this early on how successful this breeding season may have been, but indications are it's been a good one. Though only one of our 10 nest boxes has been occupied (the Starling box), it seems there are plenty of other nest sites available. Once again, the Church has provided a home for a pair of Kestrels (who have raised a brood of four) as well as a good few families of Swifts.

The Pied Wagtails are a yearly nester and though we don't know where they settled this year, we have recently seen a few fledglings being fed by mum and dad. A new nesting bird for us here is the Grey Wagtails. With the river Rother close by, it's likely they have bred there in recent years, but this May they began nest building under the eaves of the workshop by the kitchen, about 50 yards from the shop door.

Also very close by were a pair of Robins and a pair of Blackbirds, who both chose the storage room to nest. A safe choice as both nests saw young fledge successfully. We've seen baby Blue Tits, Great Tits, Chaffinches and Goldfinches on the feeders, along with of course they 20/30 young Starlings, but the highlight so far has to be our Great Spotted Woodpeckers. The male first brought his two youngsters to the feeders in early June and spent much of his time between the suet balls and peanuts, breaking them up in to bite size pieces to feed to the fledglings. On the 7th, one of the babies flew in the shop window with quite a thump - fortunately no injuries sustained apart from one hell of a headache, as it took a couple of hours under my care before flying off. The day after it was back with its sibling and dad, being fed again, but didn't leave when they did. It was only then did I believe it was the same bird as it allowed me to come very close. Our very friendly woodpecker promptly became a tourist attraction, with customers coming to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime experience of getting face to face with a wild GSW. We were cautious to not let it become to familiar with human contact and the good news is we have seen what we can only assume to be the same two juveniles back with its parents, now feeding independently.

These past few days have been unbelievably hot, with temperatures above 30°C, so the feeders have been particularly quiet. From mid May until now, however, activity was very high, particularly the suet balls which were going down twice a day. The heat is due to drop now so we may see the feeders pick up again this week.

Unfortunately in late April/early May we made the difficult decision to close the hide and nature area. With the adjacent oast house falling down, it posed a genuine health and safety risk for visitors. Within the space of a few days we had created a mini nature area outside the shop, with comfortable seating space providing a perfect spot for customers to sit and watch or photograph the birds in comfort with refreshments on hand. This small area has turned out to be a bigger success than we expected, and though it's not as established as our old area, many species are already using it happily and we hope many more will join us soon!

Winter Weather

Yesterday's horrendous rain turned to heavy snow at around 6.30pm as the temperature dropped, leaving a fair dusting greeting us this morning. This is the first snow of the winter, which has been mostly above average temperatures with a few short cold snaps. Off the back of a mild autumn and coupled with an abundance of natural food, feeder activity has been a bit short so far this season, with sales of food slightly below winter 2015.

We've had one brief visit from a Brambling so far (11th November) and a few Siskin flyovers but none stopping yet. Good numbers of Fieldfares and Redwings were present late in 2016 feeding on the yew trees, but after the food was gone they mostly moved on, though flocks can be seen most days flying over. A Grey Wagtail was regular from late October through to December, joining the resident Pied Wagtails, and a Red-legged Partridge was an unexpected visitor to the nature area on the 24th November.

After October's Buzzard sighting, our first 'perched' photos from Feathers, I was hugely surprised to find one sitting on the fence post in the Nature Area as I entered the hide one morning in December. The grubby windows seemed to help hide me, enough to at least manage a few photos and a video before it flew down to the ground behind. I managed to stay hidden as I crept around the hide for a few clearer pictures before it took off.

The colder weather which arrived at the turn of the year seems to have increased the activity on the feeders significantly, especially with today's brief flurry of snow and 2°C temperature! A pair of Marsh Tits have turned up, quite a rare visitor for us, and are now taking beakfuls of sunflower hearts to store away. Flocks of Long-tailed Tits regularly pass through and Coal Tits are here most of the time too. Charms of Goldfinches, a few Greenfinches, plenty of Chaffinches, Robins, Dunnocks, Blackbirds, House Sparrows, Nuthatch & Great Spotted Woodpecker sum up the other regulars.

Autumn Migration first and lasts

Good number of Hirundines lingered on til the 14th October - House Martins and Swallows all swarming around above the shop, farm house and Church, feeding up before their long migration south. We are still getting reports from customers of Swallow sightings, mostly around coastal areas. The bulk of Chiffchaffs have moved on too, though there are still a few around and I'm sure some will stay over winter.

I saw my first Brambling and Fieldfares when visiting in-laws in Norfolk (Ingham) on the 15/16th October, then our first Fieldfares here on the 18th. A few flocks have passed over since, but none have stopped off so far and no Redwings yet either. Hopefully the Met Office's prediction of lower-than-average temperatures for November may bring a few in. Lots of Mistle and Song Thrushes have joined the Blackbirds over the past month, feeding mostly in the yew trees.

The sporadic visiting Grey Wagtail arrived back with us in September and is now around most days at some point. Numbers of Pied Wagtails have increased too.

Grey Wagtail

The nicest birding moment in October however belongs to a Buzzard. Although an almost daily sighting, not once in the 6 ½ years up to now has one perched in nearby tree for pictures. On the 19th, as I was outside sampling binoculars with customers, I suddenly spotted one sat at the top of the conifer tree in the farm house garden. Fortunately the bird has quite happy to sit for 10 minutes or so, not only allowing for great views through the binoculars but a good opportunity for pictures too, albeit slightly distant for the Lumix.

Fortunately the bird took off towards us and landed in the nearest tree to where we were standing - I couldn't believe my luck!

Shortly after it was chased off my a mob of corvids, but not before I managed a picture or two I was happy with.

Shop News

This month we have started to stock a small range of Spotting Scopes, some are available to try and buy in store with lots more available online or to order in. We currently have a super deal whereby you get a FREE Alta+ 233AO Tripod when you buy a Vanguard Endeavor HD 65A or Endeavor 82A telescope. This deal won't last forever so get in quick if you're after a high quality scope at a very good price! The 65 is actually my favourite of the two and is appreciably cheaper too.

We've also recently restocked our range of Archipelago bird carvings, these make a perfect Christmas gift for bird lovers and all the prices include FREE p&p!

Another warm, wet winter?

Apart from a few cold days in November including a 2 minute flurry of snow (if you can call it that), so far this winter the weather has been mild with plenty of rain, much like the weather for the past 2 winters. Temperatures are still around 11/12° most days and not much cooler at night. Activity on the feeders has increased, yet without the cold weather, it's still mostly the regulars visiting, with no sign yet of any Siskins again. Hopefully the new year will see some proper winter weather and a few more exciting birds will visit.

None-the-less, over the last couple of months we have had a couple of visits from a Black Redstart, in fact even a pair came in October.

Female Black Redstart 20th October 2015

Female Black Redstart 20th October 2015

Spot the Grey Wagtail!

Black Redstart back again on the 26th November

The influx of Goldcrests which arrived in September/October has lead to daily visits from often more than 1 bird, not always easy to photograph as they constantly flit searching for food, even though they aren't all that fussed about getting too close.

We have had a few visiting Redpolls, mostly passers by, only once or twice stopping in the Nature Area. A good few Redwings, Fieldfares and Mistle Thrushes have been eating the yew berries and the Blackbirds have now started on the holly too. Again without the frost there are none visiting the Nature Area.

Redwing

Our winter sale continues on our range of Hawke, Opticron, Swarovski, Vanguard and Viking binoculars: www.shop.featherswildbirdcare.co.uk

Our prices are very competitive, our service is superlative and there's still time until the end of next week to have them arrive before Christmas!

Coal Tit Influx

I have to admit to having not known about Coal Tit migration, though in my defence it supposedly goes unnoticed most years. Even now I'm struggling to find much information about it. Numbers of British Coal Tits are bolstered in the Autumn/Winter as Continental birds arrive, apparently a subspecies, though very difficult to tell apart.

We certainly seem to be spotting more Coal Tits recently than usual here at Feathers, with last week's ringing session (the first in nearly two years) adding 5 new Coal Tits to the list, which itself stood at only 9 birds over a period of 3 years. Still we are spotting Coal Tits regularly without rings, suggesting there are a fair few in the vicinity.

Coal Tit 06/10/15 (not ringed)

 The ringing started sometime around 6am (I was of course still in bed at this time!) and by the time I arrived at work the wind had picked up so fewer birds were landing in the mist nets. Still I had the opportunity to photograph a Robin and Great Tit in the hand.

Great Tit (female)

Robin

Following on from last week's blog post, the Treecreeper(s) is now regular it seems, along with the Goldcrests.

Treecreeper

Treecreeper

Goldcrest

 The sycamore tree which overhangs the entrance to the car park seems to be the main attraction, with a late influx of Chiffchaffs finding plenty of food, but no sign of any Yellow-browed Warblers which are being spotted all over the place.

Chiffchaff

The Green Woodpecker, presuming it's the same young male bird, looked a bit tidier this week!

Young male Green Woodpecker

Young male Green Woodpecker

 A pair of Grey Wagtails were back today too, having been missed for a week or so, though the 10 Pied Wagtails are very active at the minute.

Still a dozen or so House Martins being spotted regularly (including today) so I will try to make note of the last sighting date.

No early signs of any Redwings or Fieldfares yet, though I've seen a few more Mistle Thrushes than usual as of late. I still hear Siskins flying over regularly too, and with the news that plenty are on their way south (along with Goldfinches) I expect we may have a few visiting soon. Many of both species will continue their flight from their northern UK breeding grounds through the south of England on to southern Europe, but hopefully we will hang on to a few this winter with the possibility of a Brambling joining in the mix too. Fingers crossed!

Photos from September

It's fair to say August and September were rather wet months, with warm, sunny spells thrown in on the odd occasion. This has meant the feeders have been relatively busy for what is normally a quiet time of year, but still just the usual visitors. I know there are Siskins around as they often fly over but we're still yet to see them in the Nature Area this year! Outside the shop, the Grey Wagtail has been visiting, the Green Woodpecker is visiting the farmhouse lawn in search of ants and the Treecreeper is flocking with a group of regular Goldcrests.

Our latest 'What's On' advert:

Come and visit our shop! www.featherswildbirdcare.co.uk